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Joe Berger will be traveling again this July, first to Nashville for NAMM and then to Europe (Germany, Norway & Greece)

He will have 5 sets of guitar strap ENDS and one set of Mandolin strap ENDS to giveaway as he sees fit at/or NAMM and in Europe. The guitar ends are 2 inches wide and the mandolin ends are 1 1/2 inches wide. The strap ends are hand-made and totally vegan. They look like leather, feel like leather, but are BETTER!

It has been a long time coming, but finally the brown arrowhead guitar strap end is finally available as a standard listing instead of a custom order.

The brown material has always presented a special problem for a reason i don’t really understand, but it resisted being stitched in a reasonable and predictable way. I have done batches and thrown 90% of the batch away because it wasn’t good enough. And that is just the standard design. The arrowhead . . . . ppfft!

It has been a combination of new sewing machine, different thread, different sewing foot – and most of all – a different way of sewing that finally achieved unity.

I was encouraged by Billie of CR Best Looms to keep at it. I am also extremely grateful for the technical support and patience of a good friend, Cindy Thomas, who kept making suggestions till I got it worked out.

So I have created a listing on Etsy.com for the ends. Take a look, drop me a line about them if you want. Everything is people dealing with people.

The design of strap ends for mandolin & ukulele has finally been completed and the ends are now for sale on Etsy.com on a made-to-order basis. That allows for some customization such as length and selection of available materials

Shown here are two varieties of finished examples of the “mini” shoulder ends.

The one at the right uses the gator pattern, black stitching with brass hardware.

The one at left uses a white fabric with a subdued, fashionable pattern, purple stitching, nickel-plated hardware and a complementary silver concho.

Shoulder ends like this serve two purposes – to add an extension to an existing strap or to use the extra “real estate” to add a concho to add a highlight that adds a personal touch. There are so many different conchos that can be chosen from when searching the internet

The material used is a fabric, not a leather, though it looks it. To feel it you’d think it is leather, it has the same tactile sensation and sense of quality

The “mini” strap ends are designed for a 1.5 inch wide strap and the ends themselves are 1.5 inches wide and approximately 4.5 inches long and intended to complement, not overpower, any strap they are used with. And if the strap you have is so designed, you can swap out different strap ends to give your strap, and what it is hooked to, a different look anytime you want.

Awhile back I was asked if I could do a shoulder strap end for strap 1 1/2 inches wide. It was just an inquiry and I put off creating one till now. Shown here is my work up of the small shoulder strap end. I had done a draft version that wasn’t right and I downsized the hook and adjusted the overall size of the strap end body and moved the rivet holes. For this version I added a crystal stud that won’t be on the final version

The strap end body is 1.5” wide and approximately 4.5 inches long. A one inch wide concho can be used with it. The strap end will be available as “made-to-order” only. I will not be carrying any stock as all my time goes to building up a stock of the regular, larger strap ends. For those that order them, it will be 3 days from time of order to shipping unless I need to order something to finish up. But that is only an extra day at most.

Due to recent events, I created a working model of what will be my version of a strap end for Mandolin/Banjo. The width is 1.5 inches and length is 4 inches and the hardware is yet to be finalized (I have some special stuff on order). Once I have a bit more time, I will make up a couple sets to hold for stock and make the strap ends a made-to-order item. I have in mind sending a couple sets to the UK for the summer festivals.

As with everything I make, these strap ends are completely vegan and use no leather